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This thesis is concerned with future trend prediction on capital markets on the basis of neural networks. Usage of convolutional and recurrent neural networks, Elliott wave theory and scalograms for capital market's future trend prediction is discussed. The aim of this thesis is to propose a novel approach to future trend prediction based on Elliott's wave theory. The proposed approach will be based on the principle of classification of chosen patterns from Elliott's theory by the way of convolutional neural network. To this end scalograms of the chosen Elliott patterns will be created through application of continuous wavelet transform on parts of historical time series of price for chosen stocks.

Denna uppsats behandlar små och medelstora fastighetsföretags möjligheter att finansiera sig med lånat kapital, till belåningsgrader som ligger högre än de som de traditionella bankerna vill låna ut till. Uppsatsen syftar till att kartlägga vilka finansieringsalternativ som finns på den  svenska  kapitalmarknaden  för  små  och  medelstora  fastighetsföretag  och  hur  dessa finansieringsalternativ kan utvecklas. Studien har en kvalitativ ansats. Kartläggningen baseras dels på sekundära källor, och dels på information  tillskansad  genom  intervjuer  med   personer   verksamma  inom   fastighets- finansiering, fastighetsägande eller inom akademin. Bland de alternativa finansieringsformerna på kapitalmarknaden för denna typ av företag finns  främst  mezzaninfinansiering  och  obligationsfinansiering.  Mezzaninfinansiering  är skulder som upptas med sämre säkerhetsläge än normala banklån.   Obligationsfinansiering upptas  på  kapitalmarknaden  genom  att  skulder  tas  upp  från  aktörerna  på  marknaden. Säljarreverser,  tilläggsköpeskilling,  banklån  med  hög  amorteringstakt  samt  kapital  från medinvesterare  är  andra  former  av  alternativa  finansieringsformer  som  förekommer  på marknaden, och som företag med framgång kan använda sig av i vissa situationer. Efterfrågan  av  alternativa  finansieringsformer  är  stor.  I  studien  menas  att  mezzanin- finansiering är den av de alternativa finansieringsformerna på kapitalmarknaden som fungerar bäst. Marknaden förväntas dock kunna utvecklas och det bedöms finnas plats för fler aktörer. Även för obligationsmarknaden finns utvecklingspotential, bland annat genom marknads- platser riktade mot privatpersoner. Finansieringsformerna utanför den traditionella kapital- marknaden kan fungera mycket bra för vissa typer av företag och investeringar. / This thesis addresses small and medium sized real estate companies’ debt financing options, to leverage ratios higher than the ratios traditional banks are willing to finance real estate investments to. The thesis aims to identify the financing options available in the Swedish capital market, for small and medium sized real estate companies, and discuss how the financing options can be developed. The study has a qualitative approach. The identification of the funding options is based partly on secondary sources, and partly on information obtained in interviews, with people involved in real estate financing, real estate owning or within academia. Alternative forms of financing, suitable for this group of companies, are primarily mezzanine financing and financing by bonds. Mezzanine financing is debt with lower priority than normal, preferred bank loans. Bond financing is obtained at the capital markets through debt raised from participants on the market. Loans from the previous owner, earnouts, bank loans with a high rate of amortization and capital from co-investors are other forms of alternative funding sources that exist in the market. Many companies can successfully use those forms of funding in certain situations. Demand for alternative funding is high. The study argues that mezzanine financing is the form that works best, of the alternative forms of financing in the capital market. The market for mezzanine financing is expected to develop further, and there is room for more players in the market. Also, the bond market has potential to develop further, with for example market places directed at private individual investors. Financing alternatives outside the traditional capital markets can work very well for certain types of businesses and investments.

Sustainability has started to play a greater role on the financial market and a larger number of investors are searching for financial products that contribute to the environment and the sustainable development. However, the numerous definitions of sustainable investments and green funds make the investment decision-making process difficult for investors and allow companies to “greenwash” their products. In order to facilitate the investment process for investors and at the same time contribute to sustainable development, the EU adopted the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) on 10 March 2021 as part of the Union’s sustainable finance strategy. The SFDR introduces a set of harmonized rules for financial market participants regarding their integration of sustainability-related aspects in their investment process, including different product classification levels, such as “light green” and “dark green”. Apart from the fact that the regulation means enhanced transparency, it is possible that the new product classifications will have an impact on the definition of sustainable funds and the environmental, social, governmental (ESG) investment strategies currently used by financial market participants. Additionally, the appropriateness of the new product classes in view of the aims of the SFDR could be discussed. The purpose of this thesis has been to examine the product specific disclosures of the SFDR and their implications on funds integrating sustainability, by using the legal dogmatic methodology and the EU teleological methodology. In order to be classified as an art. 8, or light green, it seems as if it is not enough for a fund to simply integrate ESG aspects into the investment process, rather the fund has to apply several investment strategies that consider ESG. For funds wishing to be considered as an art. 9, or dark green, it appears as if impact investing or sustainability themed investing could be two applicable approaches. Moreover, the sustainable investment-definition provided by the regulation contains explicit criteria, thus making it easier for investors to understand sustainable investments. Furthermore, the increased regulation and reporting requirements might contribute to less greenwashing, which in turn will benefit the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement. However, while the product specific disclosures appear to be aligned with the objectives of the SFDR, there are several uncertainties related to the definitions and classifications that prevent the regulation from fully achieving its goals. / Hållbarhet har kommit att spela en allt större roll på finansmarknaden och allt fler investerare efterfrågar nu finansiella produkter som bidrar till miljön och den hållbara utvecklingen. Men de många definitioner som finns gällande hållbara investeringar och gröna fonder försvårar beslutsprocessen för investerare samt gör det möjligt för företag att använda sig utav ”greenwashing”. För att underlätta investeringsprocessen för investerare och även bidra till den hållbara utvecklingen antog EU den s.k. Förordning om hållbarhetsrelaterade upplysningar som ska lämnas inom den finansiella tjänstesektorn (SFDR) den 10:e mars 2021, vilken utgör en del av Unionens strategi för en hållbarare finansmarknad. SFDR innehåller harmoniserade regler för finansmarknadsaktörer gällande integreringen av hållbarhetsaspekter i investeringsprocessen, inklusive olika produktklassificeringar, såsom ”ljusgröna” och ”mörkgröna” produkter. Förutom att den nya regleringen innebär ökad transparens är det möjligt att de nya produktklassificeringarna kommer att ha en inverkan på definitionen av hållbara fonder samt de investeringsstrategier finansmarknadsaktörer i dagsläget använder sig av för att integrera hållbarhet. Utöver detta kan även produktklassificeringarnas lämplighet diskuteras mot bakgrund av förordningens ändamål. Syftet med detta arbete har varit att undersöka de produktspecifika upplysningskraven i förordningen och dessas inverkan på fonder som beaktar hållbarhetsaspekter, med hjälp av den rättsdogmatiska metoden samt den EU-rättsliga teleologiska metoden. För att klassas som en art. 8, eller ljusgrön fond, förefaller det som att det inte är tillräckligt för en fond att enbart integrera hållbarhet i investeringsprocessen utan snarare måste fonden använda sig utav flera olika hållbarhetsstrategier. För fonder som önskar att bli klassificerade som en art. 9, eller mörkgröna, verkar det istället som att s.k. ”impact” fonder eller tematiska fonder med hållbarhetsfokus är typiska exempel. Utöver detta innehåller förordningen en definition med uttryckliga kriterier gällande vad som är en hållbar investering, vilket underlättar investerares förståelse för hållbara investeringar. Dessutom kan den ökade regleringen och rapporteringskraven bidra till mindre ”greenwashing”, vilket i sin tur gynnar FN:s globala hållbarhetsmål och Parisavtalet. Men samtidigt som produktklassificeringarna tycks vara i linje med SFDR:s mål innehåller både definitionerna och klassificeringarna ett flertal oklarheter som hindrar förordningen från att helt uppnå sina mål.

Share repurchases reached a decade-high level in 2019, just as US equity indices reached a historical zenith, a move in tandem that supports more than merely a correlative relation. However, this relationship moves beyond that of just a close tandem move in indices alongside share repurchases, but to the behavior of firms which began to leverage themselves in order to promote the evermore profitable strategy of large buyback programs. Those repurchases indicate an idiosyncratic and procyclical leveraging that, while much smaller in scope and less combustible by lack of derivative amplification, led to the gorging on unsustainable debt described by Hyman Minsky and experienced in the Great Financial Crisis in the banking industry. In this case, the 'Minsky moment' that may have inevitably popped the self-promotion bubble came in the form of the 'black swan' event of the coronavirus outbreak. This paper aims to historically frame the issues, with delimitation of the effect of buybacks from 2009 to early 2020 with scant reference to historical factors influencing the increased usage of share repurchase programs. The analysis within this historical scope will reflect empirical measures on the market-wide level of share buybacks and debt levels alongside the concurrent equity index acceleration....

This dissertation consists of two studies related to internal capital markets and bank relationship using Japanese corporate spin-offs. The first study analyzes the relation between internal capital markets and banks by examining 137 Japanese corporate spin-offs created between the years 2001 and 2003 (since the establishment of new spin-offs law in 2001). In a univariate analysis, we find significant positive average cumulative abnormal returns around the announcements, market-adjusted excess returns after the spin-offs, an increase of the Herfindahl index, and a reduction in the diversification discount after the spin-offs. In a cross-sectional analysis, we find that bank-related governance variables such as the keiretsu-affiliation indicator, bank loan to total asset ratio, main bank ownership, and indicator variable of the existence of a bank-appointed director on the board indicator variables are significantly positively related to cumulative average abnormal returns around the announcements, market-adjusted excess returns after the spin-offs, an increase in focus of firms in terms of the Herfindahl index, and a reduction in the diversification discount. Therefore, we conclude that there is a significant relationship between internal capital markets and banks in Japan; after the internal capital market reorganization through spin-offs the closer relationship with banks creates shareholder wealth and increases the focus of firms. This paper is now co-authored with Professor Yoon K. Choi. The second study analyzes the investment policy changes in internal capital markets and the effect of banks' monitoring on the investment changes using Japanese corporate spin-offs, including merger-facilitated spin-offs within conglomerates. We find that investment sensitivity increases significantly after internal restructuring through spin-offs, consistent with Gertner et al. (2002). Furthermore, our results show that bank-related spin-offs' investments are more sensitive to investment opportunities, Tobin's Q, after being spun off. This suggests that the efficiency of Japanese internal capital markets has increased through spin-offs after the financial deregulation in 2001. We conclude that banks seem to play significant monitoring roles in internal capital markets to increase the investment efficiency after spin-offs. This paper is now co-authored with Professor Yoon K. Choi.

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Several research studies in finance have investigated the effect of financial factors on investment decisions of firms. More recently, researchers have extended conventional models of firm-investment by incorporating a role for financing constraints in determining the firm's investment decision. Empirical work points to overwhelming evidence that in the presence of market imperfections, firm investments become sensitive to the availability of internal cash flows. However, the evidence regarding the patterns of these observed investment-cash flow sensitivities has been ambiguous. In this study we examine the impact of financial development on the sensitivity of firm-level investment to internal cash flow. Using international data from 31 countries over the 1987-1997 period, we find that after controlling for growth opportunities (as measured by Tobin's Q), investment is more sensitive to cash flow for firms in less financially developed countries, indicating higher costs of information problems and lower availability of external capital in such countries. The results are robust to six different measures of financial development. We also find a strong negative relationship between investment cash-flow sensitivity and size (as measured by log of total assets) across countries, though our results are mixed when we investigate this size effect within 6 OECD countries. Overall, these findings are consistent with the notion that smaller firms face greater information costs and are therefore more dependent on internally generated capital for making their investment outlays. Furthermore, we establish a direct connection between the investment cash flow sensitivity studies and a parallel literature on the allocational efficiency of capital markets. We also document important distortionary impacts of using log specifications in the empirical estimation, and of including negative cash flow observations in the sample, which explain the qualitative difference between our results and those of some earlier studies. Finally, our results have important policy implications. Firms that are based in countries with poor standards of financial accounting and information disclosure are found to face greater challenges in accessing external capital markets. These firms are likely to experience high under-investment costs that, at a macro level, would translate into slower economic growth for the country. / Ph. D.

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Thesis (MDF (Development Finance))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study examines whether there is a solution to the challenges being faced in the capital markets in Zambia. Literature on how other countries have overcome these challenges is reviewed to determine whether there is a solution to these challenges. The study also tests for the market efficiency of the Lusaka Stock Exchange (LuSE). The Random Walk Model is used to test for weak form efficiency using the Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) Test. The ADF Test is conducted for the period May 1995 to October 2008 using individual stocks, depending on the date the stock was listed on the LuSE. The result of this study shows that there is a solution to some of the challenges being faced in the capital markets in Zambia. The results also show that the LuSE market is a weak form of efficiency. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie ondersoek die vraag of daar ʼn oplossing is vir die uitdagings waardeur die kapitaalmarkte in Zambië in die gesig gestaar word. Literatuur oor hoe ander lande hierdie uitdagings te bowe gekom het, word nagegaan om te bepaal of daar ʼn oplossing is vir dié uitdagings. Die studie toets voorts die markdoeltreffendheid van die Lusaka-aandelebeurs (LuSE). Die stogastiese bewegingsteorie word gebruik om met behulp van die Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF)-toets vir swak vormdoeltreffendheid te toets. Die ADF-toets is met behulp van individuele effekte gedurende die tydperk Mei 1995 tot Oktober 2008 uitgevoer, na gelang van die datum waarop die effek op die LuSE genoteer is. Die slotsom waartoe hierdie studie kom, is dat daar ʼn oplossing is vir sommige van die uitdagings waarvoor die kapitaalmarkte in Zambië te staan kom. Die resultate toon ook dat die LuSE-mark swak is wat betref vormdoeltreffendheid.